


Date

by YumeHanabi



Category: Tales of Xillia
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, Dating, Love at First Sight, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-17 18:35:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29104932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YumeHanabi/pseuds/YumeHanabi
Summary: Wingul was a very composed, rational, cautious man. Which was why the first thing he did upon meeting Gaius was to ask him out.
Relationships: Gaius/Wingul (Tales of Xillia)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7
Collections: Tales of Prompts





	Date

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [tales_of_prompts](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/tales_of_prompts) collection. 



> **Prompt:**  
>  Gaius and Wingul in a modern setting. Bonus points if they have a coffee/tea/bar date because they're tired adults. Inclusion of other characters/pairings is also ok!
> 
> * * *
> 
> _*dusts off my old teacher AU*_
> 
> idk if that's what you had in mind, but here's some shameless GaiWin on a not-date x)

Wingul was a very composed, rational, cautious man. Which was why the first thing he did upon meeting Gaius was to ask him out.

And since Wingul was a very composed, rational, and cautious man, he did not even flinch under the heavy inquisitive gaze the aforementioned man gave him when he heard his invitation.

“You want to take me out for coffee,” said man repeated slowly, as if he was not quite sure he’d heard right. Wingul could not completely blame him; he was unlikely to be used to such forward overtures from new colleagues he’d just met.

“Yes,” Wingul responded smoothly, and then proceeded to save face just as smoothly. “I know a quaint little café that serves original beverages and desserts.” Gaius’ eyes widened slightly at the last mention, a detail that Wingul made sure to file away for later, just in case. “Principal Ilbert has encouraged me to rely on you if I had any question about the establishment. I would therefore like to have a chance to chat with you before the start of my employment.” There, unquestionable motives. Very smooth, Wingul. Very smooth.

The corners of Gaius’ lips were turned upward. An encouraging sign. “All right, then. I should be free today after classes, if you are available then.”

Wingul pretended to consider his agenda before he replied. “Yes, that should be fine. I shall wait for you at the school’s entrance when the time comes.”

* * *

Gaius was, without a doubt, a sweet tooth. If the hot chocolate didn’t give it away—especially when there were so many blends of tea or coffee to choose from—the deluxe chocolate parfait certainly did. Wingul himself was rather indifferent to sweets, but chocolate was not the worst choice. And the childish delight his new colleague expressed upon trying his first spoonful was certainly endearing.

“You weren’t lying about this place’s quality,” he said.

Wingul simply sipped his tea smugly. He was rarely wrong when choosing where to bring a date—not that this was an actual date; they were merely there to get to know each other as colleagues, nothing more.

“So, what brings you to our modest high school?” Gaius asked, curious. “I heard you normally teach at a prestigious college.”

“I owed Principal Ilbert a favor,” Wingul replied, but did not elaborate. “This is only temporary until he can find someone to fill the position long-term.”

Gaius chuckled. “Careful with that. Everyone who started as a temp is still there. You’ll end up with a permanent contract before you know it.”

Wingul very much doubted that. He had much more important things to do than to deal with hormonal high-schoolers. “Was that the case for you?” he asked instead.

“In a way. It’s a long story.” Wingul’s curiosity was piqued, but Gaius did not seem ready to share that story just yet. Perhaps another day.

“Tell me about the students,” Wingul asked, bringing his cup to his lips. “Anyone I should watch out for?” He had heard horror stories from some of his college colleagues who had started out in secondary education. Teenagers were apparently a very different public, and could get quite unruly if you let them. Wingul was not too worried about that—he cultivated his reputation as a very strict lecturer carefully, and he was determined to make sure it would carry to this institution as well.

“They’re good kids,” Gaius answered, fondness apparent in his tone. “There’s Agria, she can be a handful sometimes, and she has a tendency to drag others in her mischief, but she’s not a bad girl. The trick is to redirect her energy to something more productive. She’ll complain about it, but she actually likes being given tasks to do.”

“Noted.”

They chatted about the school some more, then moved to other topics. Gaius, Wingul found to his utter dismay, was a pleasant conversation partner. He could easily see himself spending more afternoons like this, talking over tea—or chocolate—while losing track of the time. What a shame that this man was going to be his colleague.

Wingul had a hard rule when it came to dating: no acquaintances, especially those he would have to interact with on a regular basis. Colleagues were, of course, completely off-limit.

Gaius was objectively the hottest guy Wingul had ever met, which was most likely why his filter had malfunctioned that morning. Finding out that his company was as enjoyable as his look was, in a way, both thrilling and frustrating. Wingul was used to short-lived relationships, one-night stands picked up at a bar or in similar environment. He’d had a few serious partnerships, especially in his youth, but those never lasted long. There was always something—or someone—that drove people away from him, and in the end he had given up trying to find someone to connect with. Instead, he settled for strangers who warmed his bed for one evening and disappeared the next morning. That was fine with him, relationships were too much trouble anyway. But it did get lonely, sometimes.

Gaius was the first time in a long while he’d felt a spark. Pity they hadn’t met in other circumstances.

Wingul was so engrossed in their conversation that he did not immediately notice that he was being observed. But no matter how distracted he was, instincts honed through years of avoiding his father’s spies eventually took over. He tried to identify the observers, but they were well hidden behind a pot plant.

“Oh, you’ve noticed them?” Gaius commented, completely unfazed. “They don’t mean harm, really, but they can be a bit much sometimes.”

“Do you know them?” Wingul asked.

Gaius cleared his throat loudly. “Agria, you can come out. Leia too.”

The ‘spies’ scrambled in panic for a moment, before a teenage girl emerged from behind the plant rubbing her head sheepishly. Another one appeared, sporting a grumpy look, followed by a taller boy with long hair tied up in a ponytail, who glared at the grumpy girl.

“Sorry, Gaius,” the first girl said. “Agria said there was a case, and, well, I couldn’t ignore a scoop.”

Gaius turned his gaze to the other girl, who looked down and mumbled something unintelligible. So this was the famous Agria. She did indeed look like she had an attitude, and, if Leia was to be believed, was the instigator of this little stalking operation.

“I didn’t hear you,” Gaius said, more patiently than Wingul would have.

“I was worried about you.”

“Oh? How so?”

She looked up and fixed Wingul with a furious look. “This guy!” She pointed at him rudely. “He was lurking around the school gate like a creep the whole afternoon!”

Now, Wingul may have arrived at their meeting spot early, in his eagerness to catch his new colleague as soon as he came out, but this was a gross exaggeration. “I was waiting for an appropriate amount of time,” he corrected.

The girl ignored him. “I saw how he went straight for you the moment you appeared!”

“That would be because we had arranged to meet,” Gaius explained, an amused smile on his lips. He proceeded to make introductions. “This is your new history teacher. He had a few questions to ask me about the school.”

Leia immediately jumped to attention. She was a bit overenthusiastic about it, but it was clear she knew her manners. A serious student, despite the first impression. “I’m sorry, Professor. My name is Leia. Nice too meet you.”

The boy merely inclined his head a little. “I’m Ivar. I was only following to make sure they didn’t cause trouble.” Wingul rather doubted his ability to stop them, but he did not voice it, and merely nodded in acknowledgment.

“You don’t understand!” Agria cried, exasperated. “You should have seen the look he gave you! He’s definitely got ulterior motives!”

Gaius turned to Wingul, an eyebrow raised and that enticing smile still on his lips. Wingul had to fight the urge to kiss it away.

“Ridiculous,” he lied. “This is a strictly professional meeting.”

“In a cozy little café?”

Damn, that girl was sharper than she looked.

“Believe what you will,” he said. “But there is only one person behaving inappropriately here, and it’s you.”

“You—”

“Agria,” Gaius chided. “Wingul is your teacher. You must show him respect. Flinging baseless accusations is rude.”

To Wingul’s surprise, she actually looked chastised. He had thought that he was being too lenient on her, but it seemed like he did hold authority over his students. She mumbled an apology, looking red in the face, and Leia jumped on the occasion to get them out of that situation.

“We’ll be going now. Gaius, Professor Wingul, see you in class soon.” She all but dragged Agria out, who nonetheless turned back to give Wingul one last nasty look before she followed her friends outside.

Quiet settled back between them, and Wingul sighed inwardly. Getting a taste of what was to come once he officially assumed his position provided welcome insight he should be grateful for, but part of him begrudged them the interruption. He was also a little wary of Agria’s uncanny ability to figure him out. He really must have let his guard down.

“So…” Gaius leaned back into his seat. “Let’s drop the pretense, shall we?”

Wingul narrowed his eyes quizzically.

“Truthfully, how baseless was Agria’s accusation?”

Wingul did not miss a beat. “Completely baseless.”

“Really? No ulterior motive whatsoever?” Gaius looked dubious, but—and Wingul’s attention perked up at that—a little disappointed as well.

“That depends,” Wingul responded smoothly, “on whether you want there to be ulterior motives or not.”

Gaius grinned at the admission. “I don’t have anything planned tonight…”

Hint taken. “I know a nice restaurant near the college, if you would like to join me for dinner.” Said restaurant was also conveniently located within walking distance of Wingul’s apartment.

Gaius beamed. “It’s a date, then!”

Belatedly, Wingul realized that he had just broken his number one rule of dating. But in the moment, he couldn’t bring himself to care.

**Author's Note:**

> I somehow ended up coming up with extensive backstories for everyone, so I might write more of this AU in the future xD


End file.
